Welcome back!  I hope everyone had a restful Easter vacation.

This week, the students will take their New York State English Language Arts Exam.  It will begin Tuesday, April 14 and end on Thursday, April 16.  There are three components to the exam.  The students have been practicing all year with reading comprehension, multiple choice, and backing up their answers with evidence from the text.

Next week, the students will take the New York State Math Exam.  Again, we have been practicing all year with computation, decimals, and fractions.  The students need to be able to show & explain how they got their answers.  The exam will be given from Wednesday, April 22 to Friday, April 24.  There are three components to this exam as well.

Even though these tests will not dictate whether or not they will be retained or go to summer school, they are still very important.  Teachers use these scores to see if a child needs extra help with Title 1 and where the class is as a whole.  We use these scores for lesson planning and Ms. Pescador-Martinez will know where the students are in ELA & Math for next year.

I told the students to stay calm during the test & do their best.  That\'s all I can ask for.  I don't expect perfection, but I always expect effort.  Please make sure your child gets plenty of rest & eats a good breakfast with protein so they can perform their best.  They also need plenty of sharpened #2 pencils with erasers and a book to read after they have finished the exam.

On Friday, April 24, the students will receive their 3rd Quarter report cards.  That means we are entering the FOURTH QUARTER!  It\'s the very last quarter of the school year.  This is the last chance to bring up grades.  If a student fails a subject, he/she must go to summer school.  If a student fails more than one subject, he/she may be retained in the 5th grade.  Please make sure your child knows that this is their last chance!

There is 12:00 dismissal on that day so I can meet with the parents about their child.  I will send letters next week indicating the times that you can meet with me.  It's imperative that I meet with ALL the parents!  As I stated above, this is your child's last chance to bring up his/her grades.  I do not want anyone to be surprised at the end of the year.

Please remember that it's up to your child to put in the effort in order to pass the 5th grade.  He/She must take their education seriously.  Being lazy will only hurt them.  Slacking off is not tolerated in my classroom.  This gets them ready for their adult life, where they will need to put effort into their jobs & family life.

If you have any questions, feel free to email me.